Lawmaker will propose execution by firing squadLITTLE ROCK (AP) — A lawmaker whose 12-year-old daughter was murdered by a man now on death row said Thursday that she will work to make the firing squad a legal execution method in Arkansas because court challenges have stalled efforts to resume the death penalty using lethal injections. Republican Rep. Rebecca Petty of Rogers said she was spurred to introduce a proposal aimed at resuming executions after a state Senate committee on Wednesday...

House supports health care termination lettersLITTLE ROCK (AP) — Legislators want to send letters to Arkansans enrolled in the state's compromise Medicaid expansion that say the program is ending. Opponents say the letters would be a waste of money. The House voted 60-32 on Thursday in favor of a bill by Republican Rep. Donnie Copeland of Little Rock that would require the state to notify all persons who enroll or re-enroll in Arkansas' "private option" that the program will end on Dec. 3...

Guns on campus measure advances in Arkansas LegislatureLITTLE ROCK (AP) — A bill to force public colleges and universities in Arkansas to allow staff and faculty to bring guns onto campus that was previously defeated found new life Thursday through the support of three Democrats. The bill expands a 2013 law that permitted guns on campus — but allowed universities to opt-out, which all 33 higher education institutions in the state did. The House Education Committee passed the reworked measure by vo...

Senate committee backs prison overhaul billLITTLE ROCK (AP) — A key component of Gov. Asa Hutchinson's plan to overhaul the state prison system and reduce an inmate backlog received bipartisan support from a Senate committee Wednesday. The Judiciary Committee advanced to the full Senate a bill sponsored by Sen. Jeremy Hutchinson of Benton, Asa Hutchinson's nephew. Jeremy Hutchinson said the bill will free up space in state prisons and provide better physical and mental treatment for in...

Winter weather hits Arkansas with snow; schools closeLITTLE ROCK (AP) — Schools, several businesses and a number of state offices shut down Wednesday as a half-foot of snow fell on portions of southern Arkansas. The northern half of the state, which typically sees winter weather more often, had sunshine and temperatures in the 40s. The National Weather Service at North Little Rock reported that 5 inches of snow fell in a band from Lewisville and Nashville in southwestern Arkansas to Pine Bluff i...

Federal lawsuit targeting steel mill is dismissedA federal judge on Wednesday dismissed a steel company's lawsuit against a rival, saying it couldn't use the court system to bypass state regulators who had already given the rival permission to build a new mill. U.S. District Judge Leon Holmes ruled the lawsuit by Nucor Steel seeking to halt construction of a Big River Steel mill in Osceola is not authorized under the citizen lawsuit provision of the federal Clean Air Act. He said his court h...

Panel rejects 'conscience-protection' measureLITTLE ROCK (AP) — A proposal to prevent state and local governments from infringing on a person's religious beliefs failed before an Arkansas legislative panel Wednesday after facing mounting criticism that it was an attempt to justify discriminating against gays and lesbians. The Senate Judiciary Committee rejected the "conscience protection" measure, a day after retail giant Wal-Mart said the measure sent the wrong message about its home st...

Panel OKs eliminating death sentence as penaltyLITTLE ROCK (AP) — A proposal to abolish the death penalty in Arkansas advanced in the Legislature on Wednesday for what will likely be a mostly symbolic vote, nearly a decade after the state last executed an inmate. The Senate Judiciary Committee, by a voice vote, endorsed a proposal to eliminate the death penalty as a sentencing option for capital murder and treason. The bill heads to the majority-Republican Senate, where it faces dim prospe...

Fort Smith advised to nearly triple sewer ratesFORT SMITH (AP) — A consultant has recommended that Fort Smith nearly triple its sewer rates over three years to help raise the estimated $500 million the federal government says the city should spend to eliminate Clean Water Act violations. City directors will vote March 17 on an ordinance that would increase the sewer rates in 2016 and 2017. The vote will come after a public hearing. If the ordinance passes, the rate that sewer customers are...

Blytheville considering repayment plan for sanitation debtBLYTHEVILLE (AP) — The city of Blytheville is considering a plan to repay the state tax sales that its trash and sanitation services have failed to pay since 2004. The Jonesboro Sun reported that finance director John Callens, along with Mayor James Sanders, are negotiating a deal with the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration to repay a debt of about $970,000. With penalties and interest, the city owes about $1.6 million. The plan...

Pine Bluff officials take no action for collapsed buildingsPINE BLUFF (AP) — Even after holding a meeting, the Pine Bluff City Council is still trying to decide what to do with the remains of two downtown buildings that collapsed. The council met Monday, and Mayor Debe Hollingsworth proposed spending $240,000 from the city's reserve fund to hire a crew to remove the debris. The ordinance was read once, but no action was taken. An ordinance needs to be read three times before a vote can take place. The...

House passes lottery bill, sends to HutchinsonLITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas lawmakers have passed and sent to Gov. Asa Hutchinson a bill that would abolish the independent lottery commission and instead place it under Hutchinson's control. The state House voted 84-3 Tuesday to endorse shifting responsibility for the games' operations to the state Department of Finance and Administration. The existing nine-member Lottery Commission would be dissolved and the governor would appoint a games di...

Harrison judge responds health inspection of courthouseHARRISON (AP) — Boone County Judge Robert Hathaway has responded to the Arkansas Department of Health inspection report that shows several health concerns in a 108-yeal-old county courthouse. The Harrison Daily Times reported that Hathaway acknowledged the symptoms like headaches, dizziness, nausea, sneezing, and coughing that employees have experienced, but said that the situation was not as bad as the report suggested. The judge told his emp...

House committee rejects car cellphone regulationsLITTLE ROCK (AP) — A dashboard video showing a state trooper narrowly avoiding a head-on collision with a driver who was using a cellphone wasn't enough to sway an Arkansas House committee that tougher laws are needed. The Public Transportation Committee voted 11-7 on Tuesday against a bill that would have prohibited people from using cellphones without hands-free devices to dial a phone number, use social media or utilize a map application wh...

Hutchinson signs measure expanding computer science classesLITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson has signed into law a measure requiring public high schools to offer computer science courses in the coming school year. Hutchinson signed the bill Tuesday, following through on a campaign promise he says was inspired by his 12-year-old granddaughter learning computer coding. Hutchinson, a Republican, was elected in November. The new law gives districts the option of offering the courses in-perso...

House panel to consider Robert E. Lee memorial dayLITTLE ROCK (AP) — An Arkansas lawmaker plans to revive an attempt to separate the state's practice of honoring civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr. and Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee on the same day by creating a memorial day for Lee. A similar bill failed twice to advance out of the House State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee after an outpouring of public comment from people who said the change belittles southern heritage. De...

Body found after fire extinguished at Vilonia mobile homeVILONIA — Central Arkansas authorities say a body was found after firefighters extinguished a fire at a mobile home this weekend. The Faulkner County Sheriff's Office says it has determined the Sunday incident to be a possible homicide from the evidence collected at the scene. The identity of the victim hasn't been released. The Vilonia and Hilltop Fire Departments responded to the Vilonia residence, where firefighters discovered the body in o...

Arkansas prison program pairs inmates, mentors for changeLITTLE ROCK — A faith-based program inside an Arkansas prison matches inmates with outside mentors in an attempt to change the course of the inmates' lives. Pathway to Freedom is housed in a facility operated by the Arkansas Department of Corrections at Wrightsville, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported Sunday. The pre-release program serves 200 inmates, violent and nonviolent, and provides a stringent, boot-camp-like curriculum that include...

7 Little Rock elementary schools to get greenhousesLITTLE ROCK — Seven Little Rock elementary schools soon will get greenhouses as part of a joint city and school district effort to teach students about eating healthy foods. The greenhouses will be installed next month at Carver, Booker, Mabelvale, Geyer Springs, Romine, Bale and Franklin elementary schools. The greenhouses will cost just under $14,000 total, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported. A $25,000 award the city won last year from t...